Learning for Love: A Muggle Studies Story
by Pandora1243
Summary: After the wizard war, Ron and Hermione run into trouble because of their different backgrounds. Ron therefore agrees to take 'muggle lessons'. Some fluff, RHr and HG. CHAPTER FOUR NOW UP!
1. Plans and Plotting

**A/N: **I own nothing but the plot and a mountain of student loan debt.

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**Learning for Love; A Muggle Studies Story**

**Chapter One: Plans and Plotting**

Hermione and Ginny were sitting at the kitchen table of Harry and Ginny's new home just down the lane from the Burrow. The war had been over for several years, and despite Harry having a slight limp in one leg from the powerful slashing curse that had hit him there, and Ginny having a little trouble hearing in one ear, everyone had pulled through fine. In fact, Hermione and Ginny were discussing some last minute arrangements for Harry and Ginny's wedding the following week, while Harry was working on some reports in the study. He was now the Head of Magical Enforcement, and reported directly to the new Minister for Magic, Mr. Arthur Weasley.

"The flowers have been ordered, and our appointments at Mistress Follicle's Hair Shop have been made," said Hermione. "The boys' dress robes are almost finished; the alterations should be complete by Monday. Other than those things, everything is set."

"I don't know how I could have done this without you Hermione," Ginny replied, "you are the best organizer I have ever seen, and these last few weeks I have been so nervous that I haven't been able to do anything right." Ginny smiled. "In spite of that though, I can't tell you how happy I am. I can't believe that we are going to be married in a week. After everything that has happened, it still feels weird to be living a normal life again. Harry has been great though, we have always been able to understand each other"

Hermione let out a sigh and started doodling with her quill. She hated it when Ginny or Harry started going on about their perfect relationship, but she knew that they had been through a lot, so she didn't say anything. She just hoped that they wouldn't notice. She was wrong.

"Oh for heaven's sake Hermione, what is with you? I had hoped that you would be happy for us, but for some reason the happier Harry and I are, the gloomier you get. I don't know what's wrong! Please, talk to me."

Hermione continued to fiddle with her quill for a few moments, wondering how much to tell Ginny. Would Ginny be able to understand?

"It's Ron," Hermione whispered. "It's not you and Harry that is making me upset. It's just that you and Harry have so much in common, and you work well together. Ron and I care for each other, but there are times when I have no idea what planet he's from let alone what he's thinking! No matter how much I try, he just doesn't seem to understand what I tell him. There are times that he totally ignores anything that I say to him! It's like he's from a different world, and I don't think that he will ever understand me. He is just so… so… IGNORANT!" As she spoke, Hermione's voice got louder and louder, until at the end, Harry's head popped out of the study.

"It's because you're muggle-born Hermione," Harry said as he came out of the study to join them.

"That's ridiculous Harry!" Hermione was aghast. She got up from the table and started pacing the room, every now and then stopping to poke Harry in the chest. "We know for a fact that Ron doesn't have any prejudices like that! He doesn't rant about pure-blood or anything! How on earth could you say something like that after all the help Ron has given you and me over the years!" Hermione had paused to take a breath and Harry took the opportunity to jump in, holding his hands up defensively.

"Hermione! Wait, that is not what I am saying at all! What I meant was that, well you two _are_ from different worlds. He's from the wizarding world, and you were raised in the muggle world. That is bound to create some differences. Ron doesn't understand what you try to say to him because he doesn't understand where you come from. Like your old S.P.E.W. thing for example. He just doesn't have any background in dealing with muggles."

"But there's the same difference between you and Ginny and that hasn't been a problem for you!" Hermione wailed.

"Hermione, I took Muggle Studies in school, Ron didn't" replied Ginny, putting her hand on Hermione's shoulder. "I know quite a bit about the muggle world. I had to compete with all these brothers, and I figured that Dad would listen to me if I knew stuff about muggles. And to be frank, Harry's muggle ancestry doesn't mean as much to him as it does to you. After all his muggle relatives died in the war, and he doesn't have any others, while you still live with your muggle parents. He just doesn't know where you are coming from that's all."

Harry walked around the room. There was a glimmer of an idea coming to mind, and he thought that it would be the perfect thing. It would give them some time together, and it would teach Ron a little about Hermione's world. He thought that it would do them both some good.

"I think that Ron needs to take muggle lessons." Harry declared.

"What?" said Ginny and Hermione simultaneously.

"Ron needs to learn about the muggle world in order to understand you better Hermione, so I think that you should give Ron 'Muggle Lessons'. It'll be great! He can learn about the muggle world, and you two can spend some time together."

Hermione thought about this for a few minutes. "You know, you may be right Harry, but how on earth do I get him to agree to this? You know how he can be sometimes, he can be really stubborn. I don't know that he would take well to the idea…"

"You just leave that to me." Harry replied, with a smug look on his face and a twinkle in his eye, "Starting tomorrow, I can guarantee that Ron will be dying to take muggle lessons."


	2. Muggle Lessons

**Chapter Two: Muggle Lessons**

Harry walked up to the door of the Burrow and knocked. After a few moments, Mrs. Weasley showed up and let him in.

"Hello Harry, to what do we owe this pleasure? Where's Ginny? She didn't come with you?" asked Mrs. Weasley.

"No Mrs. Weasley, she's still back at 'Potter Palace' with Hermione. They're busy discussing wedding details. I was wondering if Ron is home, I need to talk to him for a bit if you don't mind?"

"Of course not Harry, he's in his room finishing up on some article that he is writing for the Daily Prophet. You know, I am surprised at how well that boy has done. Head Sports writer for the Daily Prophet! It boggles my mind. Anyway, I'll just get some snacks ready for you two while you go get him." And with that, Mrs. Weasley started puttering around the kitchen.

Harry climbed the stairs to Ron's room, thinking of how he would go about the business of persuading Ron to take 'muggle lessons'. He knocked on Ron's door.

"Mum! How many times do I have to tell you not to bother me when my door is shut?" Ron shouted. "I could be in the middle of something! I could be listening to my muse! I could be…"

"Keeping your best friend waiting in the hall!" Harry interjected.

"Harry! Sorry mate, I thought it was someone else." Ron opened the door. He was standing there in quidditch robes with blue streaks in his red hair. "Sorry, I was listening to the Cannons game on the wireless. Coming in?"

"No, your mum's making some snacks downstairs and I have to admit that I'm famished. Anyways, I need to talk to you about some stuff. The girls sent me over with a list of tasks to be taken care of for next week." Harry replied.

The two friends went downstairs to the kitchen where Mrs. Weasley had set out some crisps and tarts and then quietly left the two of them alone. Harry mentioned that the dress robes would be ready on the Monday, and that they would have to go for a final fitting to make sure that everything was right. In his mind he was frantically trying to figure out a way to bring the subject around to muggles.

"So Ron, erm… What's your Dad's latest muggle obsession? I haven't been able to come around as much lately as I would have liked, so I was wondering if you knew." Harry said hesitantly.

Ron gave him a strange look. "Harry, you've been over here every day for the past two weeks, and my Dad doesn't have time for his muggle things anymore now that he's Minister. What's with you?"

Harry felt his ears go hot as he realized how idiotic he must have sounded. He decided that the best way to go would be the truth, or at least a version of it.

"Well, I kind of wanted to talk to you about muggles actually. How much do you know about them anyway? I mean, do you know how they communicate, what kind of schools they go to? That kind of stuff…"

"Harry are you daft? You were raised with muggles! I don't know any of these things, but you should? I think that the stress of marrying my sister has sent you right over the edge!" Ron was looking really concerned about Harry, who thought that Hermione had a point. Ron was really clueless sometimes.

"No Ron! I want to know how much YOU know about them. Look, Hermione was talking with Ginny over at our place, and was a little upset that you didn't know much about where she came from. She feels like you two can't connect. You both are my best mates, and I am telling you, that for your sake and hers, you should learn more about muggles." Ron looked like he had just been hit by twenty Stunners. "It means a lot to Hermione, Ron. You should know more about them. It would help you get along with her better."

"Okay then Harry, what would you like to teach me about muggles?" Said Ron laughingly.

Harry sighed and shook his head.

"Ron, Hermione is going to teach you. Boy can you ever be daft sometimes! Listen, you care about Hermione right?"

"Of course I do! What are you getting at?"

"Ron, if you care about her, you are going to take muggle lessons from her. At the very least, it will give the two of you some time together, right?"

Ron was the one shaking his head this time. "Sure Harry whatever you say. I still don't think that this is going to do any good though. I'll be sure to make is my first priority after the wedding is over okay?"

Harry laughed. Ron had always been a procrastinator and Harry knew that Ron thought that if he put it off, it would be forgotten. That was why everyone had agreed that he should not be allowed to do so.

"Ron, you start your lessons tomorrow." Ron started to protest, but Harry interrupted him. "It's a Saturday, and Hermione has made plans for the two of you to go to the museum. We felt that the best place to start would be with some muggle history. She'll be waiting for you at the main entrance at 11:00 in the morning." Harry got up to leave, "Oh one other thing, Hermione thought that it would be good for you to take muggle transportation to get there, just so that you are in the right frame of mind when you arrive. She thought that it would be a good exercise for you." Ron shot him a gaze that clearly said that Harry had turned traitor, and with that, Harry left the Burrow, secretly wishing Ron luck the next day.


	3. Transportation Tribulations

**Note to Reader: I am from Canada and I don't know how British Pounds work. All the muggle money used in this story is in dollars. My apologies to British readers.**

**Chapter Three: Transportation Tribulations**

Ron woke up to the sound of his magical alarm clock in his ear. (The clock went off at the specified time in the morning saying "Get out of bed… Get out of bed!" and if you tried to sleep later it got louder and said "You're late… You're late!" It was a gift from Hermione strange enough.) He got out of bed and the clock shut off. He took a fast shower and tried to decide what a muggle would wear to the museum on a Saturday.

After picking out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt with a picture of the Weird Sisters on it, he thought about how to get to the museum. He knew that in order to use muggle transportation he would need muggle money, and for that he would have to visit Gringotts. Ron thought about it and decided that it wouldn't be cheating to use magic to get to Diagon Alley as he wasn't using it to actually get to the museum. He didn't want to be all messed up for his date with Hermione, so rather than taking the Floo network, he went outside and apparated.

He drew some strange looks in Diagon Alley because of his attire. Although it did happen, it was rare for people in muggle clothes to enter Diagon Alley. Ignoring the stares he went straight to Gringotts. After exchanging some money, he left Diagon Alley, sending a longing gaze at Weasley's Wizard Wheezes as he passed. Fred and George's joke shop was still going strong, and Ron spent as much time there as he could. It was too bad that Fred and George were still adamantly against letting him have anything free.

On the street outside The Leaky Cauldron, he looked around for the "bus stop", or was it "sub stop"? He couldn't remember.

"Excuse me, Ma'am? Could you tell me where the sub stop is?" He asked one bewildered woman. After giving him an odd look, she walked off, muttering about how there were always strange people in this part of town. Ron realized that he had gotten it wrong. He approached another woman and this time received directions to a stop on the opposite side of the street. After waiting what seemed like an eternity, the bus appeared.

Ron got on the bus and was stopped on his way to a seat by the driver,

"Excuse me young man, but you forgot to pay the fare." She said.

"Oh, right… How much is it anyway?" The driver gave him a look. Ron was getting sick of receiving these looks.

"The fare is two dollars and twenty-five cents," the driver replied. Ron fumbled in his pockets for the muggle money and found some coins. He started handing them to her when she said with exasperation, "Put them in the coin tray please!"

Ron put the coins in the change tray until she said "Stop that's enough already", and then went to sit down, his whole face hot with embarrassment. He watched out the window for the Museum. The bus drove and drove and drove. It occasionally stopped to let people on, and let people off, but he never saw the museum. An hour went by, and an hour and a half, he was late; he was worried about what Hermione would say. Finally he got up and talked to the driver again.

"When does the bus get to the museum?" he asked politely.

"The museum?" the driver exclaimed. "This bus doesn't go to the museum! This is the route 27B; the bus that goes by the museum is the 14C! It'll take you hours to backtrack."

Ron gulped as a sinking feeling started in the pit of his stomach. Hermione was going to kill him.

"What would be the fastest way to get to the museum then?" he asked. "I have to be there for 11:00!"

"The best way to get there now would be by cab. You're still going to be late though. It would take a miracle to get you there on time now." She said.

Ron got off the bus and stepped into an alleyway. This was time for drastic measures. He decided to apparate back to Diagon Alley and take a cab from there. That way, he would still show up using muggle transportation, but he would have a chance of getting there on time.

After arriving at The Leaky Cauldron, he wasn't sure how to hail a cab. He tried several things, such as waving his hands, shouting and sticking out his tongue. (It was the tongue one was supposed to stick out to hail a ride wasn't it?)

Finally he was able to flag down a cab by emitting a loud whistle. He got in and instructed the cabbie to take him to the museum.

During the course of the ride Ron talked to the cabbie about small things. Did he like his job? Wasn't it cramped in here all the time? Why didn't he expand the interior to have more space and allow for more fares? The cabbie gave him another of those looks that Ron had been receiving all day. Ron knew that he wasn't as informed about the muggle world as he should have been, but he was starting to wonder if he had a smudge on his nose, or something stuck in his teeth. He started to realize why Harry was so sensitive about his scar.

After a long cab ride, they arrived at the museum. Ron felt immense relief at the sight of the building. He hadn't been sure that he was going to make it. As he was about to get out of the cab, the cabbie stopped him.

"Excuse me son, but you have to pay the fare…" The cabbie said.

Once again, Ron started digging in his pockets for his muggle money. He couldn't believe how much this was costing him. He was getting so frustrated that he took out everything he had and handed it to the cabbie.

"Here, take it and keep the change!" He said, and turned to leave. The cabbie stopped him again.

"Change! Son, this only covers half of your fare! What are you trying to pull here anyway?" The cabbie looked at him with a shifty eye and sized him up. "You look like a starving student you do, I expect you don't have enough for the full fare do you?"

Ron started to panic. He had used up all his muggle money and hadn't even enough to pay his way to the museum! He started to stammer.

"Well… erm… sir, if you would… I dunno… give me your address maybe I could mail… it…" The look on the cabbie's face said that this was not going to work. Just at that moment, rescue arrived in the form of Hermione Granger.

"What is the problem here Ron? Just pay the man and let's go."

Ron leaned over to whisper in her ear that he hadn't enough money to pay the fare.

"Oh honestly Ron! I knew I should have come with you from the start!" Hermione gave the cabbie the remaining balance of what he was owed and pulled Ron to the museum doors. "I take it this means you have nothing left with you? You sure know how to show a girl a good time Ron, since I guess I'm paying our way for the rest of the day. I should be giving you chivalry lessons, not muggle lessons really"

And with that she pulled the increasingly reluctant Ron into the museum for his first lesson.


	4. Museum Musings

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Well, actually I just bought a nice car, but as for literary characters, these ones are on loan from JK Rowling and co. and I (unfortunately) am making no profit from this whatsoever.

Note to Readers: I am so sorry that this update took so long. There have been a number of other things occupying a great deal of my time, and this story fell through the cracks. I have been working on something over on HPANA, and well, I'm sorry. I will try to be better about updating more often, but I seem to have lost my notes, and will have to find them again before the next chapter can go up.

**Chapter Four: Museum Musings**

Ron and Harry were sitting at the kitchen table of the Burrow talking about Ron's day. Mrs. Weasley was preparing dinner as she listened to their conversation out of one ear. She was making little noises that sounded like muffled giggles, but when asked she said that she thought she had a bit of a cold and maybe she should take some of that cough potion from The Household Guide to Magical Maladies.

Ron described the harrowing journey to the museum before telling Harry about the lesson. "So after Hermione bailed me out with the cabbie, she practically pulled me into this museum. I don't understand why she found it so fascinating, all this muggle history; after all, they got it all wrong didn't they? It was Grindlewald that was behind that big war of theirs wasn't it? It wasn't until Dumbledore got him that the war ended. Oy, these people don't know anything. All in all, it was a pretty boring wasted day."

Harry was shaking his head. Ron didn't seem to have gotten the point. "But Ron, did you learn anything about muggles at all today?" Harry asked.

"Well I learned that they don't like it when you touch their displays in the museum. I swear all I did was touch the fang on that saber toothed tiger display and I had all these muggles in uniforms coming at me and telling me they're going to bring me before the Carrot-tater…"

"Curator…"

"… whatever… and then Hermione was telling them that it was all a mistake and that she was responsible and pulling me out of there so fast I think she pulled my arm out of the socket. Merlin's beard! She was all so exited about this thing and it turned out to be a complete catastrophe. At least it's over though. We tried, we failed and now we can get on with our _wizarding_ lives."

"I don't think it's that easy Ron. I mean yeah, today was a flop, but you should try again. It does mean a lot to Hermione, and we know it's going to take some time. You can't learn about another culture in just one day you know. Look, I can go talk with Hermione, and we'll see about something else for tomorrow okay?" Harry said. He wasn't sure what could be salvaged from the day, it was obviously a complete fiasco, but he knew that Ron and Hermione cared for each other, it was just that Ron was… well… _Ron_.

Mrs. Weasley decided to intervene. She marched up to the table and, while shaking her paring knife in his face, said, "Ronald Weasley, you behaved like an idiot today. Hermione is a nice girl and you should be trying your best to learn for her sake. You put in half an effort today and tomorrow I want you to put in your full effort and do it with a smile or so help me you will be eating boiled turnip for a week!"

Ron stared at his mother in shock. "You _wouldn't_!"

"Oh yes I would!" She replied!

Harry decided to take his leave before Mrs. Weasley got into full swing. "I'm going to head on home and talk to Hermione about her plans for tomorrow. Maybe I can make sure that there isn't a repeat of what happened today," he said, and proceeded to the door.

"Oh Harry dear, could you remember to tell Ginny that the order has been placed for the cake and that it will be ready for pick up on Friday? GET BACK HERE YOUNG MAN!" Ron had attempted to make a dash for his room while she was distracted with Harry.

"Don't worry Mrs. Weasley," Harry replied, but his voice was drowned out by the sound of Mrs. Weasley starting into Ron about his rudeness to Hermione that day. As Harry left the Burrow, he could hear her shouting from the house behind him.

"RONALD WEASLEY I RAISED YOU FAR BETTER THAN TO MAKE YOUR FRIENDS BAIL YOU OUT LIKE THAT! I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT HERMIONE HAD TO PAY FOR YOUR CAB FARE AND YOUR ADMITTANCE TO THE MUSEUM BOTH! YOU ARE GOING TO GRINGOTTS FIRST THING ON MONDAY MORNING AND YOU ARE GOING TO PAY HER BACK EVERY RED MUGGLE-KNUT SO HELP ME…"

And with the sounds of Mrs. Weasley's tirade in his ears, Harry apparated home.

When Harry arrived at Potter Place he found Ginny and Hermione were already there, having almost the identical conversation that he had just had with Ron. Hermione was almost in tears, and Ginny was comforting her. She kept patting Hermione on the shoulder and handing her tissues, while Hermione had her head in her hands and recounted her version of the events of the day.

Ginny saw Harry come in, rolled her eyes at a particularly loud sob from Hermione, and said, "You know that Ron can be a prat. You could never have guessed that things would have gone that badly. He cares about you, very much…"

"He sure didn't show it today!" Hermione sobbed, her face was tear streaked and she was shaking. "I tried to show him my world, I tried to show him some muggle history, but he didn't c...c...care…" and with that she started crying afresh.

"When we went to the pre-history displays, he said that the displays looked alarmingly fake and if they wanted them to look real why didn't they make them move… and everyone was staring at us…hic and then when we went to the World War Two section he was going around saying that they had everything wrong… that it was Grindlewald who had put the imperious curse on… hic he was talking so loud… it was so embarrassing… and in the animal section, where they had all the pre-historic animals, he… he…"

"I know, he touched the fang on the saber toothed tiger…" interjected Harry. "He told me."

"He didn't just TOUCH it! Is that what he said! First he bewitched the fangs to grow so long they touched the floor! And then, OOOHHH! This is so embarrassing! He jumped on top of it and tried to ride the thing! He was acting so immature…hic… that's when the curator of the museum showed up and ordered us out. hic I can never show my face there again!" With her crying slowing to muffled sobs, Ginny went and got Hermione a cup of tea while Harry sat down and tried not to let his repressed laughter get the best of him.

"Hermione, don't take this the wrong way, but… you've known Ron for years. Did you really think that the museum would be the best place to take him?"

"Oh, Harry, I know. I guess I just thought that if he was going to learn about muggle life, it would be best to start at the beginning. And part of it was also for him to understand me a bit better, and I LOVE going to the museum," replied Hermione.

"Well, Ron really isn't capable of absorbing that much at once. I really think that you should focus on one thing at a time, 'cause that's all Ron can do." Ginny and Hermione stared at Harry in shock. They had never heard him speak about his best friend that way before. "Well… Look, I know Ron. He's my best mate, and I think we've reached a point where I can admit that although he's the best friend a bloke could ask for, he has a few drawbacks okay?" Harry said defensively.

"Well, what do you suggest then, oh omnipotent one?" said Ginny, with a twinkle in her eye, and a little exasperation in her voice.

"Um… well, maybe you should focus on his strengths. Ron loves sports. Maybe if you gave him a lesson in muggle sports he would be more interested?" suggested Harry tentatively.

Ginny perked up. "Harry, that is a good idea, but Hermione doesn't know much about sports, muggle or otherwise," Ginny turned to Hermione with an inquisitive look on her face, "do you?"

Hermione got a very determined look on her face. "I'm not a complete clutz if that is what you mean. And tomorrow, I am going to give Ron a lesson in sports that he will not soon forget!"

**End Chapter Four**


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